Jeremiah 41:4-18 - The Massacre Of The Mourners

⁴ And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, when no one knew of it yet ⁵ that there came certain men of Shechem, of Shiloh, and of Samaria, eighty men, having their beards shaven, and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the LORD. ⁶ And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went: and it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. ⁷ And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them and cast them into the midst of a pit, he, and the men that were with him.

⁸ But ten men were found among them that said unto Ishmael, Slay us not: for we have treasures in the field, of wheat and of barley and of oil and of honey. So he forbare, and did not slay them among their brethren. ⁹ Now the pit in which Ishmael had cast all the dead bodies of the men, whom he had slain because of Gedaliah, was the same which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with those that were slain.

¹⁰ Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king's daughters and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive and departed to go over to the Ammonites.

¹¹ But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the princes of the armies that were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, ¹² then they took all the men and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon. ¹³ Now it came to pass, that when all the people which were with Ishmael heard Johanan the son of Kareah and all the princes of the armies that were with him, then they were glad. ¹⁴ So all the people that Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah. ¹⁵ But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men and went to the Ammonites. ¹⁶ Then Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the princes of the armies that were with him, took all the remnant of the people which had turned from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam; men of war, and the women, and the children, and the eunuchs, whom Johanan had caused to turn from Gibeon: ¹⁷ and they departed and dwelt in the habitation of Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, that they might go and enter into Egypt

¹⁸ because of the Chaldeans; for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor in the land.